Austenite formation in C-Mn steel

The production process of almost all modern steels involves austenitization formation of the austenite phase upon continuous heating. Many of the microstructural features and properties that are obtained upon subsequent cooling are to a large extend determined by the evolution of the microstructure and chemical inhomogeneities during austenitization. In spite of its importance, austenitization so far has received much less attention than the transformations on cooling; however, the interest is continuously increasing, especially for the development of new types of steels (Dual-Phase steel, TRansformation-Induced Plasticity steel etc.). The aim of the thesis is to develop knowledge and to gain better understanding of the formation of the austenite microstructure in steel during heating, e.g. austenite nucleation kinetics, austenite growth modes and morphologies, redistribution of carbon between the phases during the transformatio